Anyone who studies science knows that finding the next breakthrough is expensive and no matter how hard you try or how well funded your project is, and there’s always the chance that the research won’t produce any results that can be immediately used. Today’s project may just be laying the foundation for the next generation of studies.

This is why science grants are so important to advancing modern technology. Private businesses aren’t always willing to take such large risks, so private charity and public government funding often provide a major boost to cutting edge science.

Last week, the governor of New York announced a major $2 million grant for Cornell University to study stem cells. The current ban on funding for stem cell research is limited to federal funds, so this state program is a great chance to get around that and make sure that the science is moving forward anyway. The money will be used at Cornell to increase facilities and resources available to studies and faculty, and some other colleges in the stem cell network will benefit from increased sharing of knowledge and results.

Of course, not all grants are just for the colleges themselves. Many grants are available to individual students attending certain schools or studying certain subjects & specialties. Interested students should visit GrantsNet to find out more about these funding opportunities.